Leather Moto Jacket

The Moto Jacket pattern by Jennuine Design. This is one that I won back last summer from Shorts on the line and I knew right away it was the perfect pattern to make for my oldest son Jackson. I haven’t sewed very many clothing items for him and I thought the cut and style would suit him well.

Also knowing he has two little brothers that will likely wear it at some point motivated me to spend a little more time and thought into the materials I would use on the jacket.

Let’s start with the pattern itself, it is made for boys or girls ages 2-12!

So much versatility.

I decided to make it for Jackson in a size 7. I wanted it to fit him well this winter and not be something that he needed to grow in to. I figure if he outgrows it by next winter Owen won’t be far behind and it can be passed on to him. He typically wears a boys small 6-7 so I would say the fit it pretty accurate.

The pattern itself is very detailed with options on how to attach your sleeves and work with the jacket lining.

The only changes I made was to leave out the pockets. I think they are really nice looking but I was working with thrifted leather and it already had a seam with a hidden pocket near where I would have placed one so I left it as is.

I found an old leather jacket from goodwill for about $14.

The main thing to look for is that it is 100% leather. It is a seasonal item so if you ever need leather for a small project go check theirs out.

I once bought a leather skirt at goodwill to make some baby moccasins for $8.

The other thing to look for is a large size. The larger the size the more leather you have to work with.

I found this black leather and even though it has a couple lines in it in places that would need to be worked around I couldnt resist its buttery feel. 🙂

The other one I thought about getting had a button closure across the front so in the end I decided on the black and figured I could use the existing zipper as well.

Some pliers were used to pull off the zipper teeth where I wanted it to be shortened to and added the zipper stops back on in that spot.

Win win!

For the lining I rummaged through my fabric bin and found the perfect item.

For the neck and the sleeves I really think an old sweater is ideal but we did not have one so I found a ribbed sweater knit in gray from Fabric.com.

Everything sewed up really nicely with a leather needle and a walking foot.

If you have never tried a walking foot for working with leather/vinyl it was amazing!

I can’t even explain how much easier and smoother everything went.

If you do not have a walking foot, I usually put tissue paper on top of my fabric which allows it to slide across the presser foot without getting stuck. Then when you finish, just rip the tissue paper off.